WEBVTT TRY TO CLEAN UP THIS TRACTOR TRAILER ACCIDENT. STILL NO WORD ON ANY INJURIES HERE. "ACTION NEWS" INVESTIGATES A NEW HOUSE FOR THE MAYOR OF McKEESPORT IS ON LAND, CLEARED AND CONDEMNED BY THE CITY SAVING THE MAYOR THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER JOINING US. PAUL, WHAT WERE YOU ABLE TO LEARN ABOUT THIS? WE LEARNED THE MAYOR GOT THE PROPERTY FOR THIS HOUSE ON THE CHEAP USING A CITY PROGRAM. NOW HE SAYS HE WAS GIVEN NO SPECIAL FAVORS. BUT THE MAYOR IS THE FIRST AND ONLY PERCENT IN McKEESPORT WHO USED THIS PROGRAM TO BUILD A HOUSE. THE STORY OF THE MAYOR'S HOME STARTS WITH THIS FIRE IN 2012. TWO ABANDONED HOUSES IN McKEESPORT WERE TORCHED. THE ARSONIST LATER CONVICTED AND SENT TO PRISON. IN THAT SAME TIME, THE MAYOR WAS LOOKING TO BUILD A HOME. THAT IS AN AREA WHERE I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN. AFTER THE FIRE THE CITY SPENT $12,000 TO TEAR DOWN THE TWO HOMES THAT WERE BURNED AND ANOTHER ABANDONED HOME NEXT DOOR. THAT HOUSE WAS OWNED BY JOSEPHINE LAWSON. OH GOD, HONEY. ALL THAT'S LEFT ARE FRAGMENTS. SHE NOW LIVES IN AN APARTMENT. THAT'S WHEN SHE WAS ASKED TO GIVE UP HER PROPERTY. I SIGNED IT OVER TO McKEESPORT. I SIGNED IT. IN 2013 THE CITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY WENT TO COURT TO TAKE HER PROPERTY AND THREE OTHERS BY EMINENT DOMAIN. THEN THE PROPERTIES WERE TURNED OVER TO MAYOR, COUNTY RECORD SHOW THE FOUR LOTS ADD VALUE OF $40,000. BUT HE PAID THE CITY JUST $7500. ALSO, THE CITY WIPED AWAY TAX LIENS WORTH NEARLY $10,000. AND REMEMBER, THE CITY PREVIOUSLY PAID $12,000 IN GRANT MONEY TO DEMOLISH THE BUILDINGS. THAT'S $22,000 SAVINGS FOR YOU AS THE HOME BUILDER, RIGHT? NOT REALLY. BECAUSE AS A HOME BUILDER I WOULDN'T -- DEPEND ON HOW YOU LOOK AT IT. I WOULD NOT HAVE BOUGHT THE PROPERTY WITH ALL OF THE LIENS. THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD DEAL. I CAN UNDERSTAND HOW IT CAN BE PERCEIVED AS THAT. THE MAYOR SAID HE IS OFFERING THE SAME DEAL TO ANYONE WHO WANT TO BUILD THE HOME IN KEYS PORT. THERE WERE ONLY THREE NEW HOMES BUILT THERE IN THE LAST DECADE, INCLUDING THE MAYORS. HE IS NOT THE FIRST TO USE THE PROGRAM BUT SAYS HE IS THE FIRST TO USE IT TO BUILD A HOUSE. COULD ANYONE GET THE CITY TO GET RID OF TAX LIENS, KNOCK DOWN THREE BUILDINGS IN ORDER FOR THEM TO BUILD A LOAM. ABSOLUTELY. FOR A HOME, COMMERCIAL BUSINESS, WHATEVER. THIS IS ONE OF OF THE FEW NEW HOMES BUILT. BUT UNLIKE MATE THE MAYOR, SHE DIDN'T GET A DIME OF HELP FROM THE CITY. SHE HERSELF PAID TO HAVE THE OLD HOUSE DEMOLISHED. PEOPLE WE TALKED TO IN A McKEESPORT SHOPPING COMPLEX WERE UNAWARE OF THE CITY PROGRAM AND SKEPTICAL OF THE MAYOR'S MOTIVES. THAT'S CIRCUMVENTING THE PROGRAM P. I DON'T KNOW IF THAT SET THE EXAMPLE THAT OUT THERE THAT'S AVAILABLE OR IF HE IS JUST TAKING ADVANTAGE OF IT FOR HIS OWN USE. I'M PROUD TO HAVE THE UNT TO UTILIZE RESOURCES AVAILABLE US TO. AS FOR JOSEPHINE LAWSON, SHE DOES NOT REGRET LOSING HER OLD HOUSE AND PROPERTY. SHE JUST WISHES THE MAYOR, WHO SHE KNEW AS A CHILD, HAD CONTACTED HER FIRST. I THOUGHT THAT THEY COULD AT LEAST GIVE ME A DOLLAR OR THE MAYOR COULD HAVE CAME AND THANK ME. HE GREW UP THERE. I KNOW THE KID. NOW THE MAYOR SAYS HE REMEMBERS LAWSON BUT HE DID NOT KNOW WHERE SHE WAS LIVING WHEN HE TOOK OVER HER PROPERTY. SHE COULD HAVE KEPT HER PROPERTY BUT ONLY IF SHE HAD PAID OFF ALL OF THE DELINQUENT TAXES ON THAT PROPERTY. AS FOR THE MAYOR, HE HOPES TO MOVE INTO HIS NEW HOME SOMETIME IN THE NEXT MONTH. YOU CAN DEFINITELY SEE BOTH SIDES.